Are you any good?

At Architecture, that is.

Where's your portfolio?

What have I been doing in Chicago? Working for a running shoe store, and a company that makes dog shampoo as an office assistant. Applying for jobs at a ski resort out west, and also doing arch stuff on the side pro-bono. I have sent out almost 600 very nice, very professional applications in the last year. I am good at architecture. Just take the job dude.

Im technically an owner of a firm here and I know a lot of others who own small firms in the tri state area. The common thread from all is that they are sort of busy, have just enough staff, not making any more cuts but not hiring. Those who have hired only do so when someone leaves and even then the job has gone to someone they may have worked with in the past or they know. My advice would be to stay close to any people you know in the business, like you said, "it's super difficult to break into the existing network of architects". Also, go to events and chat. It seems dumb, but art galleries, Junior AIA, lectures even suburban park district fundraisers - you would be amazed at how being at the right place at the right time works - for example you could be talking to an architect thinking about hiring someone but not sure and then by talking with them outside of a work setting can land you an offer. I once hired a kid who was working a summer as a laborer on a jobsite of mine. He was asking me questions and I asked what he studied and when He said architecture I figured why not.


Bossman, I've been following your posts for a year now. Still no luck? Fear not though, the Dog Shampoo factory is definitely a conversation starter with future employers. Its a good ice breaker for how one survived the Great Recession. Have you looked into the suburban market? I think the core city is flooded with architects but the suburbs have a hard time finding them often.

i've looked into the suburban market. my background is mostly in high-end, sf residential and design-build. admittedly, that is part of the issue.

Ha - so is mine. Hence why Im on Archinect so much lately. I'm working out of my house now and subleased my office to a web design company.

make: I'd like to think that I am at least sort of "any good." I've been told that I have an impressive resume and my work samples have garnered positive results (one firm said they really liked the work, but of course, they can't hire anyone right now). My portfolio is literally sitting in a box in my bedroom. I was working on getting images for online but that's been set aside until I have a computer I can do that on. I was definitely no superstar at school (though I worked super hard and did well).

le bossman, I definitely appreciate your frankness, and I do recognize how lucky I am to have a job right now. But at the same time, I'm really afraid that if I did continue with this job, I might not leave it for a looooong while. It's not like I have years of experience working for a firm that I can fall back on. I'm currently working as an admin assistant at a university, I did a tiny bit of 3D work freelance for an article that may get published in _Nature_, and I've been being the treasurer/finance person for a nonprofit (volunteer). I've also been going to some architecture-events, and trying to meet people and looking for/applying for jobs (which has seriously slowed since I started this one).

jack, I guess part of what I'm asking is would it be better to devote more time to going to events/networking? Right now, I'm doing what I can, but if I wasn't working I could do more. (though I am totally stoked to see Tod Williams and Billie Tsien tonight!). However, if I didn't work, I could go to pretty much everything I wanted to, but I'd run out of money (and favors from friends) pretty fast. I've also heard that Chicago firms are a little busy, but not ready to hire anyone quite yet. I guess you can't really put a timetable on this, and no one can predict the future.

I think you should take the job man. You should have enough time after hours to network and go to events and all of that. In this economy you're lucky to be in the position to take a full time job doing anything.

I would recommend you do competitions, or freelance work on the side whenever you can just to keep your creative juices flowing. But you never know how long it could take for companies to start hiring again and for you to be one of those lucky few.

And if you are lucky enough to get an arch. job then you leave the admin position. I'm sure the place would understand, you are leaving for your career.

And as for the resume if you have the space throw the admin. position on there. At least it shows your doing something and making an effort with your time.

Where's Tod Williams and Billie Tsien speaking?

We could do some networking tonight! ;-)

There's a lot of little stuff out there. You could help someone freelance on the side. There's a lot people working that way right now and they need help to get drawing sets out. But you will need a computer and software for that...

As far as real jobs go, people I know who have gotten new jobs are all Revit jockeys. There's even one on CL today.

I would love to get my hands on freelance work in the mean time. If I did try to stay as the admin assistant, I 1) would be able to get a computer in the next month or so 2) would really look forward to doing some redlines/drafting/etc at home. Unfortunately, I don't know Revit (played around with it for a few hours once) and I feel like I can't apply for jobs that require it without some more experience. How does one get to assist with freelance work--I'm guessing it requires knowing someone. I definitely don't feel like I have enough experience to pursue anything more than freelance 3D work/graphics/digi fab on my own.

Tod Williams and Billie Tsien! tonight at 6, and the law school of the UofC. They're presenting/talking about their new building + reception after infohere.

my thought psdo is that a lot of people are in your shoes right now, and there will be some understanding in the eyes of employers for this. i didn't mean to imply that you should give up all together. i've been out of work for more than a year. maintain your university contacts, that is the best advice i can give. keep in touch with your fellow classmates and professors; right now this is the best you have in terms of a professional network. the closest i've been to architecture in the last eight months was when i was a juror at a university. there may be some opportunities of this sort, and they can be great for networking. i would still say, take the job. unless it is contracted for a certain time frame, you can still leave whenever you want. it is a choice. believe me, plenty of employers and potential employers have done enough stringing me along in the past year for me to think it's okay to worry about yourself first. use the job to fund your design interests. buy some software, or a new computer, take a class, work on your own artwork, build some furniture, whatever.

I work pro-bono and volunteer work doing everything from architecture design, drafting, modeling and rendering - anything to keep my hand in, and when I am not doing that, I am learning the latest Revit 2010. Emplorers want people that are resourceful and are doing something related in this down time. I went to an expensive school too, and by doing free work, i am bulding a bridge to a paying job - but most of all, I am protecting my investment.

part II:

i took that temp job full time, fully disclosing to everyone that i was still going to be looking for other (architecture-related) jobs but it would likely take some time to find one in architecture. everyone seemed ok with that explanation (and several of the older faculty i work with joke that there was another architect in my desk during the 70s). my job is pretty easy, and it wouldn't be too hard to find a replacement if needed.

however, last week the dept chair came into the office (my boss, with whom i share the office, was away) and mentioned to me that my boss will be retiring soon (maybe march, date still tbd). he also said that if i were to apply they would very seriously consider my application.

if i were to apply AND get this job, this would be a huge pay increase (like i could actually pay my school loans), some real responsibility, and maybe the job could actually give me new skills (like managing a budget, coordinating the activities of >100 people, in general, managing an office, that sort of thing). it would probably be more engaging that what i'm currently doing. i also know it would look good on my resume to get promoted so quickly. BUT i feel like i couldn't quit and i'd have to put my entire architecture job search on hold for like a year, maybe longer. which depressingly, makes me think that i'll never have a chance again. i'm really stressed about the fact that there's going to be an entire new crop of grads this may who i'll have to compete with.

i've only told a few people, and have gotten totally different opinions. frankly, i'm inclined to stay where i am ready to pick up an arch job as soon as i can. not making enough is a pretty good motivator! i told my father this and he essentially was like "what are you thinking? of course you'll apply!" he obviously doesn't feel the guilt that i would have leaving like that, but i already feel pretty terrible about the potential for leaving without a huge amount of notice (pretty much anyone who is reasonably organized and able to multitask who can operate a computer can do what i currently do).

i know i am _extremely_ lucky to have any job right now, let alone a pretty good one. however, thinking about being an administrator for maybe the rest of my life (or at least the foreseeable future) seems pretty bleak. and i don't want to think about how hard i worked in grad school and all the debt i took on only to do something completely unrelated.

thoughts? entry level jobs might happen by may? or not for years? advice? thanks!!

2 page resume and your looking for your first employment position?

you may want to consider trimming the fat on that thing and get it down to one page.

if your expecting an architecture job anytime in the near future, think again. as people have mentioned, although the "bottom" may have been reached on the economy, construction has really reached a standstill. with so many real estate vacancies, new construction might take awhile and generally TI projects don't require as much labor as ground-up construction.

it took one of my friends (we graduated fall 08) over a year to find a job. I got laid off twice last year. currently I am "employed" through unemployment checks. would look for a temp. job but unemployment pays more than a retail/bar/food job anyway.

i would say take the promo and bank as much as possible. it's likely this job would pay better than an architectural job anyway and will allow you to make a dent in student loans, etc.

if something architectural does come up, i think it would be alright to consider it when that time comes. but to pass up a better paying and higher responsibility position now on the off-chance you are able to find an architecture job sometime in the future doesn't really make very much sense.

Take the job, it will considerably relieve enormous amounts of stress while you look, help you think clearly, etc. Looking for a job while you don't have one is neither fun or healthy.

Take the job or I'll come over there and take it!!

Yeah, I don't see why there is even a dilemma in the first place. And I'm the optimistic one about this field. If you get this job, it will give you less stress about finding that architectural position, and I don't see how it will hurt you at all. If anything if you do apply, and you do get this position, you may still be more competitive than a recent grad should architectural firms start hiring. But then again, I've always held the opinion that firms shouldn't hire by knowledge of specific software packages. I think its lame and short-sighted.

The job may even afford you to be patient about waiting for the ideal position, instead of getting something that may not be suitable just so you can work at an architecture office.

I'm in a relatively secure non-arch position right now as well, and currently looking for an architectural position. But I can afford to be patient about what I take. I admit I also feel like I have to compete against all those other highly competitive graduates. But you know what, I constantly look for ways to finding opportunities to gain knowledge and skills that benefit me and my future should I get an architectural position - I.e. sustainability analysis, program code/VB.NET/Macros, certifications/licensing, etc. In your case, you could learn a lot about management and adminstrative skills that could be really beneficial.

Well, I think the dilemma stems from feeling guilty about starting a job without intention to stay at least a while. After all, they could just hire someone who is more likely to stick it out and not be stuck looking for someone twice. Though I guess its time to be a little more me-oriented and a little less concerned with how my decision effect others? (this is where I would insert one of those smiley faces if I were one of those people who did that sort of thing). Thanks for helping me feel little less guilty! And helping me feel less optimistic about the economic climate.

Paradox, whether or not I get this job, it's likely going to be an internal hire. However, if I'm gone from my job (for whatever reason)/you're still looking I can let you know about it when the time comes. There's all kinds of bureaucracy with applying to these jobs but it still definitely helps to know someone on the other side.